Overview

A compelling, warmhearted account of growing up Black and Irish Marguerite Penrose's is an extraordinary story of making a great life from complicated beginnings. Marguerite was born in a Dublin mother-and-baby home in 1974, the daughter of an Irish mother and a Zambian father. Severe scoliosis indicated a future of difficult medical procedures. She was a little girl who needed a break. And she got it at three when she was fostered - and later adopted - by a young couple, Mick and Noeline, and acquired a mam, dad, sister, Ciara, and loving extended family. Growing up, Marguerite's appearance was occasionally remarked on by strangers, but it wasn't until her teens that she understood that her skin colour was a provocation for some. The progressive city that she knew was revealed to also have an unpleasant undercurrent. Marguerite's story is one of facing some big questions - Who am I? How do I live in world made for people with bodies different to mine? Why does anyone care about my skin colour? - with intelligence, humour, courage and common-sense. She writes about coming to terms with the circumstances of her birth and, like so many in her position, looking for answers. About navigating the world as an active woman with a disability. About what it means to be both Irish and Black. Mostly, she writes about embracing life in a spirit of openness and positivity. Yeah, But Where Are You Really From? is a captivating, wise and inspiring memoir by a truly remarkable woman.

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9781844885930

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Reviews

It's the ordinary life described in this book, and the extraordinary life inside that life, that make it such an engrossing, urgent, and entertaining read. I couldn't put it down -- Roddy Doyle

It's the ordinary life described in this book, and the extraordinary life inside that life, that make it such an engrossing, urgent, and entertaining read. I couldn't put it down -- Roddy Doyle A heartfelt story of overcoming and an important contribution to the rich tapestry of Irish life -- David King

It's the ordinary life described in this book, and the extraordinary life inside that life, that make it such an engrossing, urgent, and entertaining read. I couldn't put it down -- Roddy Doyle A heartfelt story of overcoming and an important contribution to the rich tapestry of Irish life -- David King Beautiful, moving, tender and informative -- Sinead Moriarty A wonderful read -- Miriam O'Callaghan [Marguerite's] warmth and enthusiasm for life are immediately apparent within the pages of this beautifully written book * Irish Times Magazine *

It's the ordinary life described in this book, and the extraordinary life inside that life, that make it such an engrossing, urgent, and entertaining read. I couldn't put it down -- Roddy Doyle A heartfelt story of overcoming and an important contribution to the rich tapestry of Irish life -- David King Beautiful, moving, tender and informative -- Sinead Moriarty A wonderful read -- Miriam O'Callaghan

[Marguerite's] warmth and enthusiasm for life are immediately apparent within the pages of this beautifully written book * Irish Times Magazine * It's the ordinary life described in this book, and the extraordinary life inside that life, that make it such an engrossing, urgent, and entertaining read. I couldn't put it down -- Roddy Doyle A heartfelt story of overcoming and an important contribution to the rich tapestry of Irish life -- David King Beautiful, moving, tender and informative -- Sinéad Moriarty A wonderful read -- Miriam O'Callaghan There's no doubt this memoir will gather momentum and rock boats * Sunday Independent *

Author Information

Marguerite Penrose was born in St Patrick's Mother and Baby Home on Dublin's Navan Road in 1974 and grew up in Dublin. In recent years she has been writing and speaking publicly about the needs of people born in institutions, about being a Black Irishwoman and about living with a disability. She works for the VHI and lives in Meath. Yeah, But Where Are You Really From? is her first book.

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